


The Other Belasco AU

by djinmer4



Series: Belasco [1]
Category: Earth X (Marvel Comics)
Genre: Belasco/Kitty Pryde, F/M, Mayfly/December Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-19 19:48:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 13
Words: 13,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17008080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/djinmer4/pseuds/djinmer4
Summary: Alright, I'm just procrastinating by posting stuff here.  This is the other version of the Belasco AU that mikeellee and I were working on.  Also, to stick it to tumblr.





	1. Hazy Feel Turn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mikeellee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikeellee/gifts).



> Okay, so @mikeellee and I were talking about alternate universe Kurtty a few months ago. One of the ones that came up was Earth-9997. In typical fashion, we both agreed the concept had some merit, and that it was executed in a less than stellar way by Marvel. And decided to see if we could do better. So here’s my (very late) take on Belasco!Kurt.  
> Be warned, I did a bit more research on Earth-9997 … then promptly decided that universe made no sense and discarded most of it. So anyone looking for something that will fit canon should probably go elsewhere.

After spending a few thousand years without a right arm, Kurt admitted to himself that it felt weird to have it back. His balance was off. He kept whacking the arm into various objects. He’d start doing something with his hand, then realize he’d only use his left hand, leaving his right lying useless. “If I’d known getting you back was a handicap,” he addressed his newly reattached arm. “I might not have agreed to King Britain’s proposal so easily.” He was currently sitting in a suite in the palace, trying to deal with odd phantom pains. (Weren’t you supposed to get phantom pains after an amputation? He thought he remembered enough of human medicine to know that.) It had been a week since the wedding of Medusa and King Britain, and five days since the Union Jacks had reattached the long-petrified arm. Kurt figured he could spend at least a month adjusting before too much work piled up in Limbo. And once he got back, well, then he could just make as much time as he needed after all.

The soft sound of someone sneaking into the room made him turn.

Kitty looked surprised and innocent and alarmed and entirely too young. The plush blue robe she wore reminded him of her Excalibur uniform, as did the way she was half-phased through the antechamber door. The image brought back another rush of memories. Meeting her in New York, those first few missions with the X-Men, her fighting Magneto. But there were still giant gaps. He remembered meeting her, but he didn’t remember how they became friends. Remembered founding Excalibur, but not her reaction to Professor X’s death. In his mind, she was a scramble of remarkably vivid memories and complete blanks.

This might have been why he had been avoiding the newly unfrozen members of Excalibur for the past week.

But could anyone blame him? It was bad enough that they had missed several years of tremendous changes. The release of the Terrigen mists, the return to semi-feudalism, how much the very environment of the Earth had changed. None of them had dealt with the whole Celestial embryo and the Vibranium energy crisis that had followed. Vibranium had only been a scientific curiosity when they’d been petrified.

Not only on a grand scale, but also what had happened to the members of the team who hadn’t been turned to stone. Meggan had still been in the honeymoon phase of her relationship with Brian; she came back on his wedding night to another woman. Piotr had been Mr. Sinister and was now the Czar of Russia.

Kurt had time-traveled thousands of years backward and become one of Excalibur’s worst enemies.

It occurred to him that he should leave. Teleport away. Go back to Limbo. Give the woman who had been his best friend in the world time to adjust to the new reality. Instead, he remained frozen on the chair as she finished entering the room. For a moment they stared at one another. “I was hungry and about to make myself a snack,” she whispered. “Care to join me?”

For a moment they were back in Excalibur, having one of their midnight chats. That must have been what prompted him to say yes, rather than leaving as he should have.

* * *

Some of his clearer memories included Kitty (Katzchen, that’s what he used to call her) epically failing at cooking. Not that it would have mattered much; while he could eat and enjoy indulging luxuriously, he could also survive solely on the magical environment of Limbo, on the torturous feelings he wrung from his victims or the souls of the dead who wandered into his domain. He could put up with whatever disaster she ended up preparing.

The ‘disaster’ proved to be vegetarian cup ramen and some frozen mochi balls. (It was sheer luck that the Terrigen mists hadn’t affected Earth’s flora as badly as it had Earth’s fauna. Even if every place had a shortage of meat, people were only starving at the same rate as they had before, albeit in different distributions.) Inoffensive to the palate, even if nothing like what he could prepare at home. So the food went well. Even if the conversation did not.

“So, you’re arm … “Kitty was the one to break the silence.

“Ah, yes.” He held up his right arm, opening and closing the three-fingered fist. “It was caught with the rest of you when the Grey Goblin attacked.”

“But you managed to get away.”

“Sort of. I ended up teleporting into a Terrigen mist and things got worse from there.”

She sipped at the broth. “How so?”

“My physical mutation actually got worse,” he responded, glossing over the actual form of his mutation. “I got attacked, and when I was able to teleport away, I accidentally sent myself back in time.”

After a beat, she continued. “That’s interesting, but I meant the form of your arm. You don’t look as you did when we fought; you look more like K-” she cut herself off.

“I’m a shapeshifter.” He looked down at his fork. “The Union Jacks said I should try to match the arm during therapy rather than force it to match my usual form. Better for reintegration.”

The conversation died at that point and they ate in awkward stillness. Finally, Kurt could stand the silence no more. “I’m sorry.” he blurted out.

“You’re  _apologizing_? For what in particular?” She wasn’t going to make this easy on him.

“Sorry for … “ What was he actually sorry for, instead of feeling a vague sense of general guilt?

“Sorry for everything?”

“Well, not  _everything_. I’m sorry for what I did to Excalibur in particular.”

“You’re sorry?  _You’re_  sorry? You tried to kill all of us. You turned me into a cat! You kidnapped Ilyana and tried to make her your  _sex toy_!” Kitty’s voice grew higher and louder with every sentence, and Kurt hoped the soundproofing in the palace was up to the challenge. She also ended up leaning forward, as if to reach him from across the table. But he didn’t try to stop her. She needed this.

“Yes, I did all of those things. And I’m sorry. And I wish to make amends. What do you wish for, Katzchen?” Using the nickname might have been a mistake, she looked like she wanted to stab him with her chopsticks.

“I wish those things had never happened!”

“And so do I. Hence, why I’m sorry.” If this was how Kitty was reacting, he wasn’t going to bother with the rest of Excalibur. They were clearly better off without him. But she had been his best friend, and he found himself longing to do his best for her. “I can’t change the past. But what do you want? Do you want me to leave?” If she did, he’d do it. He’d go away forever, or at least the length of her life. Not even his current friendships with Brian and Piotr had as much preeminence as his past with her.

She dropped back into her seat. When she spoke again, her voice was very soft, almost impossible for him to hear. “I want none of this to have happened. I want the person who hurt me not to be my friend. I want my friend back.”

“I can’t be that person again.” Well, he supposed he could fashion some type of golem in Limbo, shape it in his old form, give it the right type of instructions to act like Kurt Wagner. But he wouldn’t be that person. And he didn’t think Katzchen would appreciate being fobbed off with a doll like that as if she were a child. “But I will do everything in my power to make up for what I’ve done to you.”

“And are you going to make the same offer to the rest of Excalibur? To Meggan? To Dane? What does Ilyana think of all this?” Ilyana hadn’t been frozen in time with the rest of them, but clearly, her opinion mattered the most to Kitty.

“I will. Within reason though.” She looked at him out of the corner of narrowed eyes. “You were my best friend. I feel you should get more from me than the others.”

“And Ilyana?”

“We have a working relationship. We weren’t that close anyway.” Ilyana had never been that close to Brian, otherwise, she too would have been here for the wedding. Right now she was covering for him during his rehabilitation.

“Kurt wouldn’t have said that.”

“I’m not Kurt Wagner anymore.”

“I suppose.” She wrapped her arms around herself, curving in to hide from the world. Kurt got up and put the dishes in the sink. He'll leave her alone now. But her voice, still wavering but getting stronger stopped him. “We can’t go back to the past.” Not without playing into Mephisto’s hands anyway. “But if I have to face this future completely unprepared, then … “ she looked up at him. Tears streaked her face, but her eyes were clear. “I’d rather make friends while doing so.” She stood up again and reached out for his hand. “Hi, I’m Kitty Pryde. A Jew, a woman, an American, a Cubs fan, and a founding member of Excalibur. Be my friend and I’ll risk my life for you. Because that’s what I enjoy doing, clearly.”

This might actually work out. He reached out with his right hand. “Hello, I’m Nightcrawler. But in Limbo, I’m known as the Demon Lord of Temptation, Belasco. They’ll tell you to stay away from me, that I’m not good for you, but that just makes it more fun.”


	2. Stations of the C

_Warnings: Serious talk of religion. Opinions expressed here may or may not be held by the author. Feel free to skip.  
_

“So you’ve never been back?”

“Why would I? As far as I was concerned there was nothing here. No people, no artifacts of power, not even any interesting technology. King Britain moved everything to London, including Excalibur.”

“So even after you remembered who you were … “

“If I wanted to have a conversation with Excalibur, and that happened more often than you might think, I’d go to London to talk with your statues, not an empty outpost.” Belasco looked around, trying to remember which room had been his back when he’d been Kurt Wagner. “By the way, shouldn’t you be packing as well?”

Kitty made a face. “Yeah, well, I’m done.”

“What?”

“I’m done.” He looked back at her. People had cringed from his displeasure for centuries; Kitty just looked defiant. “Look it was mostly clothes and hardware. The hardware either went with Brian or is now so out of date that it’s not worth taking with us. The clothes didn’t fare too well after thirty years with no care either. In the end, there were just some keepsakes from my Mom and our early X-Men days. It all fit into one suitcase, which I’ve just placed on the plane. I came back to see if anyone needed help and saw you looking lost.”

“I’m not lost. I know exactly where I am.” At her skeptical look, he added, “I just don’t know where I’m going.”

“Forgot where Kurt’s room was?” He nodded, glad that his red complexion was as effective at covering up his embarrassment as blue fur used to. She sighed and walked off. When she reached the end of the hallway she turned back with a raised eyebrow. He hastened to follow her.

When they got to what she identified as ‘his’ room they encountered another problem: his door was locked. Thirty years had also done a number on the automatic systems. While most of Excalibur had doors that had failed in an open or partially open state, allowing their inhabitants access, his had remained closed. Fortunately, he was with the one person who never found locked doors an obstacle.

Inside he found a full-length mirror, too many posters of Errol Flynn and … a crucifix.

“ _Now_  what’s wrong?” asked Kitty from where she had gone to poke at his mirror.

He gestured to the crucifix. “I’d forgotten … how much this meant to me at one point.”

“Ah.”

“I guess we should leave this here. It’s somewhat absurd for a Demon Lord to hang onto the trappings of Catholicism.” He turned his back to it, looking to see which of his possessions might be salvaged after thirty years abandonment. Kitty watched him for a while with a frown on her face.

“You don’t seem happy about leaving it behind.”

“I … I guess I feel a little regret. On one hand, it’s a tangible part of my past when so many other things have disappeared. On the other, that’s not really who I am anymore. Even if I took it with me, I wouldn’t venerate it the same way.”

“Are you leaving it behind because you’re ashamed of what you’ve done?”

“No.” Kitty was really giving that eyebrow and that pout a real workout. “I am ashamed of what I’ve done, but first of all, I’m trying to redeem myself. And second, that wouldn’t stop me from caring.”

“So you’re not taking it because you don’t believe anymore.”

“Exactly. I’ve seen too many demons and gods that are nothing more than mutants or aliens. I’m one myself. I can’t make myself believe that divinity truly exists anymore. But I still feel bad about abandoning it.”

She sat gingerly on the bed, then reached up to the collar of her shirt. Tugging it open, she showed him the necklace he had bought her over thirty years (a lifetime, a few hundred years) ago. “Do you remember giving me this?”

“Yes, it’s one of the few things I remember clearly.”

“There are times when I feel like abandoning Judaism.” Now that was a surprise. He knew how important her religion was to her. To hear her express doubt … “A lot of times. Sometimes I think there can’t really be a God, because if there was one he’d never let the world be this horrible. Sometimes I hate my religion because other people who share it have values, or express thoughts, or commit actions that are so contrary to what I feel is right. And sometimes people will reject me and use religion as their excuse and I feel it just isn’t worth it to continue trying to be accepted by something that thinks I’m a monster for just existing.”

“Sometimes it’s easier to believe in the people who accept and love me than any abstract religion.”

“But religion isn’t just about belief. It was also about the community. The people who supported me and celebrated my existence. It’s about ideals. No, I don’t always agree with all of them. But many of them are part of my moral code, and I still strive to fulfill those virtues.”

“So maybe you’re no longer the Catholic Kurt Wagner who built his foundations on his church. But clearly,” she pointed at the crucifix. “There’s something there that you still value. And I think you should take that with you. To remind you of whatever it is.”

He stared at her for several minutes. Kitty occasionally hunched her shoulders like she wanted to look away, then straightened up as if daring  _him_  to defy her. Finally, he made his way over to the wall and took down the cross.

“How did you get so wise when you were petrified for thirty years?”

“How did you get even sillier after living for several hundred?”


	3. Mega Neko

  _Takes place in the past_.   _Both books mentioned here are real grimoires, although I make no guarantee for their effectiveness.  Please note, magic in 9997 is governed by the same rules as mutation, essentially magic works the way people think it works._

Ilyana dropped the book onto her face then proceeded to use all the curse words she  _wasn’t_  supposed to know, according to her brother anyway.  But really, there wasn’t anything else she could do.  She wasn’t strong enough to challenge Belasco.  She just got lost when she tried running away.  And when her friends came to rescue her, they either died like Thunderbird, were trapped like Storm or just went missing like Nightcrawler.  Her brother and Kitty were the most successful at trying to rescue her, but they were both defeated as well.  Now her brother was lost somewhere in time and Kitty had … 

No!  She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Her brother was gone, but she knew where Kitty and Storm were.  All she had to do was find Nightcrawler, free Kitty and Storm, and come up with a way to get back home.  When not testing her, or having her try to make a bloodstone, he gave her free access to his library as a way of increasing her powers.  As long as she continued to show progress, he wouldn’t monitor her, and she could continue to search for solutions for her friends.

The problem was, of course, that this library had been created over hundreds of years by a rather eclectic sorcerer.  There were probably thousands of books and with no particular organization.  Finding anything useful would probably take her years, if not decades.  She didn’t know if she could stall or divert him for that long.  She checked out the book she had just dropped on her own head.   _Grimoirium Verum_.  Ilyana sighed and chucked it to the side.  This one looked old enough to be a first printing which would probably be worth thousands in the real world, but she already knew it would be useless for her.  She put her head down and started to cry.

Something warm and fuzzy bumped into her ankle.  She looked down and saw warm copper eyes looking up at her.  Ilyana felt a brief flash of anger at being reminded of her friend’s failure to rescue her, but it was quickly smothered by the shame of remembering if it wasn’t for Ilyana’s own mistakes, Kitty wouldn’t be in this position at all.  “Oh Katya,” she sighed, picking up the small grey cat.  “How did you get away?”  Indeed, Belasco seemed to take rather perverse pleasure in keeping her friend with him at all times.  Ilyana didn’t know if he was flaunting his power, using her friend as a hostage, or maybe he just liked cats.  Probably a mix of the first two.

The cat ignored her flash of temper, and butted her head against the Russian’s chin, purring all the while.  Despite her pride, Ilyana started to relax.  “Katya, you always did know how to make me feel better,” she said, petting the dark grey fur with long, smooth strokes.

After maybe half an hour, when Ilyana was starting to fall asleep, Kitty started squirming.  They’d had cats back in Russia, so the young blonde knew immediately to let go.  The little grey cat bounded up the bookshelves, then turned back, almost as if expecting  Ilyana to follow her.  She did, watching her friend slip around teetering piles of books and other strange paraphernalia.  The cat slipped around another shelf, and then the Russian heard a loud thump.  When she rounded the corner, she noticed a book had been knocked to the floor.  “ _Mafteah Shelomoh”,_ she read aloud.  “Do you think it will be helpful?”   Ilyana turned blue eyes up to the grey cat, who was sitting there washing its front paws.  The cat paused to give her a wide-eyed innocent look.  Ilyana remembered Kitty using that same look on her brother and Nightcrawler to get her way.  

“I guess it’s worth a shot.”


	4. The Ex and the Missus

Kitty couldn’t stand it anymore. It had been six months since she and the rest of Excalibur had been de-petrified and she was beginning to feel smothered. When they had first awakened to this new world, Brian had offered them the hospitality of Buckingham Palace until they had adjusted and they had all gratefully accepted. Since then they had started finding their niches and leaving. Rachel, Dane, and Jacqueline had started commanding the Union Jacks on Brian’s behalf. Rahne had decided to leave superhero life altogether and become a teacher in Scotland. Douglock had accompanied her. Lockheed had decided to join the new X-Men team in America. That left only her and Meggan still freeloading.

It left a sour taste in her mouth. Kitty was a mutant, a woman, a Jew, and a Cubs fan (did the Cubs still exist?), her identity was defined by struggle. In addition, she had been a member of the X-Men since she was fourteen. She might as well have a big sign on her back stating ‘Try to kill me. I like it!’ What she didn’t like was needing to be protected or feeling useless.

Kitty had a sneaking suspicion that one of her old friends was placing pressure on King Britain to keep her from any potentially dangerous situations. She had started raising the idea of joining the rest of Excalibur in the military a month ago, but Brian kept putting her off. Yes, she had needed some time to adjust and bring her knowledge of technology current, but it meant nothing if she didn’t apply that information in the real world. She needed to go out and start living, otherwise, she was going to end up like Meggan.

She took a brief moment to wonder who her erstwhile guardian was. Ilyana? Piotr? Belasco? (Not likely.) Maybe Brian had just decided that the youngest member of Excalibur needed more protection on his own. Either way, it was an absurd idea. Fortunately, there was a solution at hand. Scott and Hank had come by to ratify another treaty between the US and England. Even if Brian thought she was too fragile to handle missing thirty years, she doubted Cyclops and Beast would make that mistake. She should have gone with Lockheed when he told her he was leaving. But at the time, she’d still been reeling from what had become of her best friend.

She walked up to the conference room, nodding to the Union Jacks who were guarding it. From outside, she realized they must be wrapping up for the day. Rather than phasing in and interrupting she chose to wait.

As it turned out that was unnecessary. As she turned away from the door, it opened and she nearly phased through the person on the other side in surprise. Before she could stutter out an apology, the middle-aged woman swept her hands up to capture Kitty’s chin and start examining her face. “Kitty? Is that you?”

“I’m sorry, do I know you?” Chubby, middle-aged bordering on old, with dull auburn hair. Kitty tried to match features to memory and came up wanting.

“It’s me, Jean Grey. Kitty, it really is you! My God, you are so  _young!”_

This was Jean Grey? Kitty looked deep into the dark green eyes, but couldn’t see anything of her former  _senpai_. She tried to pull away but the other kept hold of her face. She was just about to phase when someone came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders.

“Yes Jean, it really is Katzchen. But perhaps you might give her some space? She’s been through a lot and we don’t want to overwhelm her now, do we?” Belasco. If anything, being rescued by one of her worst enemies just made the situation even more awkward.

“Oh yes, I’m sorry Kitty.” One last hug, too close, too intimate for a stranger and then the older woman let go. “We really must take the time to catch up with each other. I’ll be here in London for the next three days, so we can do that when it’s better for you.” With that Jean (was this really Jean?) gave her a wave and walked away.

During the conversation, Scott, Brian, and Piotr had all walked out to witness her confusion. Kitty should have been embarrassed that apparently everyone she was trying to impress had witnessed her being rendered speechless but she was still dealing with the shock. Scott looked over at her face. “You look like you could use a drink.”

* * *

“I said that, but I’m not actually sure … Kitty are you old enough to drink?”

“Scott, even if you subtract the thirty years I spent as a statue, I’m still twenty-one. I’d be old enough to drink even if we were in the US, and here in Britain, the legal age to purchase alcohol is eighteen. So I’m fine.”

She, Scott, Piotr, and Belasco had ended up in a small, quiet pub in one of the side streets of London. It had been recommended by Brian as a place to go that was quiet enough to talk, and apathetic enough not to care that the Czar of Russia, a Demon Lord and the world-renowned leader of the X-Men were all there grabbing a drink. Unfortunately, they weren’t apathetic enough not to care that some tiny no-name girl was drinking with these luminaries. Kitty was drawing more stares than the other three put together.

“I know, I know. I just can’t get over the fact that you’re still so young.”

“Is everyone going to say that? You, Jean, Ororo when she came here last month. You know I’m older than your students, right?”

“Yes, but well. Sixty-four. Piotr?”

“Fifty-nine without the time travel. Seventy-nine with.”

“Kurt?”

“Too old to keep track, but several hundred years at least.” Belasco took a sip of beer then leaned against her. Kitty regretted taking an inside seat at the booth.

“Kitty?”

She sighed. “Youngest at the table.”

“Cherish it,” said Belasco, then nudged the plate of Welsh rarebit in front of her. “And eat something, you look entirely too pale.” They all spent a moment eating or drinking their orders. “Now, what is the problem?”

“What happened to Jean? I didn’t even recognize her!”

“What do you mean what happened to her?” asked Scott, clearly puzzled. “She got old, of course. Just like the rest of us.”

“Piotr got old. Ororo got old. Brian and Hank got old. You got bald-I mean old.” He frowned at her mistake but she kept going. “Jean … it’s like she’s an entirely different person.” Over her shoulder she saw Belasco make a face at not being included in her litany, but then again saying Belasco got old was like saying the sun was hot. ‘Old’ didn’t begin to cover what had happened to Belasco.

“Your overreacting-”

“She’s not.” Piotr interrupted Scott. “Even today, I see nothing of the Jean from the past. Once she seemed superhuman. Now she is not.”

“I don’t know, Piotr. It really could just be life.” Scott turned to her. “Things have happened. The loss of her telepathy from the Terrigen Mists. The death of Professor X. Her marriage with Logan-”

“WHAT!”

“Hush, Katzchen, keep your voice down. We don’t want to disturb the others.” She looked up at the Demon Lord and nodded. Kitty wished he would give her a little more space. She’d agreed to try to rebuild her friendship with him, but it was hard with the way he kept pushing boundaries. And there was a big difference between being touchy-feely with Kurt and being acting the same way with  _Belasco._

_“_ I’m sorry, did you say she got married to Logan? Because she was still with you when I was petrified.”

“Yes. They had an affair. I canceled our wedding. Then they went off to New York.” Scott took another bite of his fish (Kitty shuddered to think what type of fish they were now using; it looked like something out of an episode of  _The Simpsons_ ).

“Are they still married?”

“I don’t know. When we all got together to fight Skull, Jean tried to get him to join in but he refused. I know they haven’t been living together since then, but I’m not sure they divorced.”

“And how is Logan?”

“He’s not doing too well.” That attracted Belasco’s attention away from his meal of … Kitty wasn’t sure what he was eating but it was very bloody. But it couldn’t have been that bad because he had ordered it off the menu. “What’s wrong with Logan?”

“Hank, well, you know how Hank is right? Hank was trying to discover the difference between fetal mutants, the ones like you Kurt who demonstrate mutation at birth, and pubertal mutants, who develop their powers over time.”

“I thought it was due to being first or second generation?” asked Kitty.

“No, apparently it’s due to Celestial tampering.  _Everyone_  has the genes to become a mutant, that’s why the Terrigen Mists mutated people instead of just killing them off. Hank was trying to see why some people develop their powers at birth or later or only with a catalyst. Except it turns out that’s not quite true either. There are in fact unaltered humans who don’t react to Celestial interference, or Vibranium tainting or the Terrigen Mists. Most of those humans do in fact resemble mutants, usually the ones who display more animalistic traits. Turns out the Wolverine was one of these unaltered humans.”

“Go on,” urged Piotr.

“He didn’t take the revelation well.” Scott paused and finished off his glass of whisky, then got up for another round. When he sat down again he elaborated on his statement. “He started laughing, stripped naked, then dove into the New York harbor. He’s not dead, but no one’s seen him since.”

By now they had all finished their meals but continued drinking. The metal giant from Russia was the first to regain his voice after the ruby-eyed man’s revelation. “That seems a little over the top, even for Logan.”

“I’d like to say the same, but I was right there when he was told. He really did all that.”

Kitty sipped her Mudslide, her third and last drink of the evening. “Scott, you haven’t told us how you feel about this. You were in love with her after all.”

The three of them waited while Scott thought about his answer. “You know, I haven’t seen her since we were all fighting Skull. When I saw at the wedding, I was expecting to feel a lot. Anger at being betrayed, nostalgia for the love I once had. But when I saw her I felt nothing. There was more guilt for not feeling anything than even pity for what she had become. I just didn’t care.” He drained his glass again. “You might be right Piotr. Whatever it was that drew us all to her … it’s gone now.” He stood up. “Shall I get another round?”

“I think you’ve had enough for the evening, darling.” That voice! Kitty tried to scramble out of the booth, but Belasco wrapped his arms around her, preventing her from moving. She tried to phase, but somehow he kept her from activating her power.

“Emma Frost?”

“Kitty Pryde? I had heard that you were alive, but I didn’t expect to meet you here.” The White Queen was dressed in a slightly more conservative fashion and her hair had faded from blonde to pure white, but otherwise, she looked essentially the same.

“Disappointed, Ms. Frost?”

“Astonished, Ms. Pryde.” Then Emma did the unexpected and actually  _smiled_  at Kitty. The younger woman was especially surprised since she couldn’t detect any derision or mockery at all. “Seeing you alive again is actually quite a pleasant surprise. I’ve no doubt that your return means great things.” She turned back to Scott. “I’ve got to see this one safely back to the hotel. But let’s spend some time together tomorrow. I think I’ll enjoy reminiscing with you.” With that, she carefully supported Scott (who Kitty noticed was swaying a bit) and the two of them left the pub.

“Uh … I thought you said that all the older telepaths had been killed when Skull’s powers awakened.“

“She was off planet at the time.” Belasco finished off his beer and gestured to Piotr that the evening was over. Fortunately, they had paid as they went, so didn’t need to settle a bill. She and the Demon Lord waved goodbye to Piotr when they got out. “You should take advantage of her offer. She can give you another perspective on the past thirty years.”

Kitty made a face that got him laughing. “If you say so. I remember her getting on my nerves all the time.” They continued to walk for a while, and Kitty tried to get her brain to accept the reality that  _Demon Lord Belasco_ was essentially walking her home. “So … her and Scott?”

A yellow eye winked at her. “Let’s just say Scott has more than one reason not to be bitter over the end of his and Jean’s relationship.”


	5. Katanas are Just Better

“It was never part of her. It’s just a tool with an attitude is all. There’s less of Ilyana in this than there is in a photo or a piece of clothing. Give it up. Give her up. I’ll see it’s kept safe and sheathed.” Jimaine Szardos held out her hand to Kitty Pryde.

Kitty was exhausted. She had spent all day fighting her possessed friends, trying to keep the sword out of Gravemoss’s hands. She’d banish the sorcerer from Meggan or Brian or Douglock, and he would just move to someone else. She’d finally cut down his options by moving each recently exorcized member into a stasis chamber until he was left with no choice but to face her himself and she killed him. Tired, abused and heartsick from killing someone again, faced with a future of having this happen over and over again, given the option of handing over the responsibility of the Soul Sword to a friend of a friend, in another world, Kitty would have gladly let it go.

This was not that world.

“And who are you, that I should just hand over my friend’s memento? Another power-hungry sorceress?” Kitty didn’t even know the person in front of her. As far as she could tell, this woman was just like the two who showed up earlier. An entitled magic user who simply demanded things be handed over to her, with no explanation, compensation or offering to help fix the problem.

“I’m Jimaine Szardos, little girl. First-born daughter and heir of Margali of the Winding Road. And the Soul Sword is my right!”

“And what possible claim can the Szardos have over Magik’s gift to her friend?” An amused voice stated behind both women. Kitty turned and saw Belasco in what she deemed his full ‘demon form’. Horns, tail and red skin included.

“Belasco!” Jimaine, whoever she was, shrank back. “Are you here to steal the sword from its rightful wielder?”

That earned the sorceress one arched eyebrow and a contemptuous smirk. “I’m here to  _visit_  the rightful wielder, same as I do every weekend. What’s unusual is seeing a practitioner of the Winding Road here as well.” He casually stepped between them. Kitty could almost believe he was protecting her and wondered how her life had come to this. “Now, perhaps you would like to answer my question before I lose my patience with you.”

The blonde bitch straightened up. “The Soul Sword should be wielded by a true practitioner, not left in the untrained hands of a girl who obtained it solely through chance. First, she can hardly hope to defend herself. Just look around.”

 _Okay, that wasn’t her strongest argument_. thought Kitty, as Belasco did indeed take in the surroundings. Unfortunately, aside from the fact that the power had been shut off in this wing of Buckingham Palace, there was very little damage to be seen. There were broken walls and furniture in other rooms, but no more than he might see on an especially rowdy day of training. There was also the unconscious body of Piotr (who had been the last one possessed) and Gravemoss’s own dead body. Belasco finally spotted those two and turned to her.

“That,” she said, pointing at the deceased sorcerer. “Was a body-hopping necromancer who was trying to steal the sword. Piotr was just the last person he possessed.”

“Where’s everyone else?”

“Every time I freed someone, I put them in a stasis chamber right after. Otherwise, this would have been a very long and deadly game of musical … heads.”

“And you killed him once he could no longer hide. I’m impressed.” He turned back to the pink-clad sorceress. “I recognize Gravemoss. Dear Katzchen managed to defeat him using just her wits and the magic of the Sword itself. That’s strikingly better results than any of your confrontations with the man, Jimaine. Any other arguments?”

The other rallied, lifting her chin and doing her level best to turn up her nose at both of them. It was rather ineffective against the Demon Lord. “It’s a waste. She won’t use the Sword to its full potential.”

“To murder her fellow practitioners? Now we get to the crux of the matter.” Jimaine’s startled gasp told Kitty that Belasco had hit the nail on the head this time. “All you wish the Soul Sword for is to murder your competitors on the Winding Way. Such a lofty goal and glorious purpose you would put the Soul Sword to.” He turned back to her. “Katzchen, what did you last use the sword for?”

The youngest one stared.  _Why would it matter?_  “This past week. Destroying a curse cast on Jericho Drumm’s brother. I mean, he could have done that himself, but the curse had been there for a while and he wasn’t sure he could lift it in time before the guy died. It was faster for me to do it with the sword. And then there was the army of zombies two weeks before that.”

“You drew it twice in the same month? No wonder you’re only getting attacked now,” he said  _sotto voce_. Then he turned back to Jimaine. “Aiding the innocent and destroying villains seem like much worthier goals than yours. Anything else?” He didn’t give the sorceress time to argue. “No? Then I’ll tell you why she is the rightful wielder of the Soul Sword.

First, that sword was a gift from her friend. For you, it would just be an artifact of power. For Katzchen, it a symbol of the bond between her and Magik. For Magik, it is a means of defending her friend even when she can’t be here. The very fact it was given is significant, and your dismissal of that is … unlikely to go over well with the Sword’s creator, to say the least.

Second, she prevents people like you from exploiting it. As long as it is in her hands, it will not be used for evil. She defended herself against Gravemoss and she was ready to fight you when I arrived. There’s no need for it to be handed over to a greater being for safekeeping when she is clearly doing an excellent job already.

Third, what she does use it for is good. Instead of murdering people the way you would, she’s been using it to defend herself, her friends and the innocent. You say she would waste it’s potential, but instead, we can see that she is using it for the betterment of the world.”

Finally, he stepped very close to Jimaine and smiled. Kitty recognized that smile. It was the same one he used before he had teleported Piotr away and turned her into a cat. Jimaine must have recognized or at least understood the emotions because she tried to twist away. “Finally, none of that matters. It is her sword, and  _I_  will defend her right to it.” He let go of the other magic user and stepped back. “Let the rest of our kind know that Kitty Pryde is under my protection and if they wish to claim the sword, they will have to face me. Now, BEGONE!”

With that, the blonde sorceress with the pink-stripper clothes vanished in a puff of smoke. “Did-did you just teleport her away?”

“No, she ran away by herself.” He turned back to her, the sneer on his face melting to a more genuine smile. “And how are you, Katzchen?”

It had been a really long day, and she still needed to get her friends out of stasis and clean up the mess. That must have been why she threw herself into him and started crying into that red tunic he was wearing. There was a second of hesitation, then his arms came up to embrace her. “Okay, let it out. It’s going to be alright.” They stayed that way for a long while, just her crying into his chest, while he soothed her by stroking her back and hair. She finally pulled away when she could take a breath without breaking into a sob again. “Sorry, I’ve made such a mess of your clothes.”

“Believe me, I’ve had worse. Feeling better now?”

“A bit. I think I need to wash my face.”

“I agree. You’re not exactly the most graceful crier, _liebling_.” That actually got her laughing, but then gave her hiccups. It took a few more minutes for her to calm down. “I’ll go release Brian and the others from the stasis pods now, hmm?”

She nodded. Just before he went through the door, she called out. “And Kurt? Thanks for everything.”

He smiled back. “You’re welcome, Katzchen.”


	6. Date Night

_Sorry, no dead Amandas this time around.  But this does set-up the scenario that eventually kills her._

Kurt was idly paging through a book on Japanese culture when he felt the telltale pressure of another person teleporting.  With a sigh, he looked up and saw Jimaine Szardos, dressed in her flamboyant stage costume again.  “Jimaine.”

She hesitated, taking in the three-piece suit and more importantly the glamour he was wearing.  “Kurt?”

“Oh, so now you acknowledge me?”

“Ku-Bel- No,” she shook her head as if trying to clear it.  “Kurt.  I’m sorry.  I just found out and had to see you.”

“It’s Belasco.  Kurt is for my friends.”  He put down the book.  “Found out what?”  He had a sneaking suspicion about what this was about, and he didn’t think the conversation was going to end in her favor.

“About what happened to you.  About you becoming, well, what you became.”  She aborted a gesture to his body.

“About being Belasco?  Everyone else has known that for almost a decade now.  Funny how you’re only showing up today.”

“Ah, ye-yes.  But to be fair, we thought you had been petrified by the Grey Goblin.  It never occurred to me or mother that you might be … around.”

“Excalibur has been unfrozen for a year.  And yet, you never bothered to try to contact me before this?  Oh, wait-” he continued sarcastically.  “There was the time you showed up and tried to steal the Soul Sword.  Seems you’d rather attack your former teammates than work with them.”

“That was a one-time thing.  As for the rest … to be fair, no one ever told me about it.  I really would have been here sooner, had I known.”

The silence grew so heavy, it could have been used as ballast.  “I really owe Mephisto an apology.  He’s not going to get it, but I’ll say it silently in my head the next time I see him.”

“What?”  She was clearly confused by the non sequitur.

“Oh, back when I first time-traveled, he told me that the Szardos family only adopted me to exploit my power and that we only had a relationship so you could control me.  When I got my memories back, I thought he was lying.  Looks like he was telling the truth in this case.”

“That’s not-”

“Then why is it that thirty years ago, when Brian was trying to contact people he couldn’t even find  _Amanda Sefton_  to tell her that her lover had been turned to stone?  Why is it that neither you nor Margali ever showed up to even try to turn us back?  Everyone else made an attempt or at least showed up to mourn.  Why is it that a year after being unfrozen, Katzchen and the others can’t even recognize you?  That doesn’t seem to be the actions of a friend.”

“I-”

“The answer is that you never cared.  Once you realized there was no advantage to you hanging around, no access to objects of power, no pawns to manipulate, no dimensions to travel, no power you could steal, of course, you left.  No need to try to free one deluded battery.”

This time she had learned to stay silent.

“I can’t believe I let you fool me into a relationship Jimaine.  To think I wouldn’t recognize my own sister, I must have been desperate.”

“Kurt I’m sorry!  Do you want proof of my love?  Think about this: I never asked you to change yourself!”  She made another gesture at what he was wearing.  “Is this for her?  Did she make you pretend to be human for a date so she wouldn’t be ashamed of being seen with you?”

“No, you decided it would be easier to change yourself; much less risk of slipping up.  Or maybe I’m wrong.  Maybe you did something to my mind in order to fool me into thinking you were  _Amanda Sefton,_ someone who never existed.  And as for this, she asked for one day for a completely normal date where she doesn’t have to worry about being stared at or recognized.  Not something you ever worried about.”

“She wants to change you.”

“She wants to understand me, which I think you never cared about.”

“Please, Kurt-”

“Leave.  If I ever see you again, you will regret crossing the Ruler of Limbo.”  He turned away and waited for her to leave.  She teleported away, just in time for Katzchen to come down the steps.

“Hi, sorry I’m late that took-” she reached the bottom of the stairs then cut herself off.  “Kurt, is something wrong?”

“No, why do you ask?”

“You look … “ she grasped his hand and steered him over to a mirror.  When he looked at his reflection, he realized his glamour had burnt off, leaving him with horns, fangs and red skin clearly on display.  He supposed he was lucky the clothes had been purchased rather than part of the glamour, otherwise they would have reverted too.

“I’m sorry.  It’s nothing.  I just got riled up about something.”  He quickly started to rebuild the glamour.  Pale skin, dark hair and blue eyes.  No fangs or horns in sight.

Kitty fidgeted, ruffling the loose folds of her dark green dress.  “Look, if you’re more comfortable that way, you don’t have to do it.  I just wanted to have one completely normal, apple-pie Americana date in my life, but it was stupid-”

“Katzchen, do you remember when we went back to Muir Island to get everyone’s stuff?  And you said there were times you didn’t want to be a Jew?  Or a mutant?  Or even a woman?”  She nodded.  It had been the first serious conversation they had after Excalibur had been unfrozen.  “Well, let me tell you a secret.  Sometimes I don’t want to be a Demon Lord either.”

“So you’re okay with this?”  Hope shone in her copper-colored eyes.

“Well, I don’t want to do it every time, and I think you’d get bored with that too, but one date?  After we’ve been doing this for months?  We could both use a break from being Belasco and Shadowcat.”  Okay, maybe the date wasn’t completely normal because he was still teleporting them across the Atlantic to New York, but it was normal as the two of them could get.  No one would see anything more than two ordinary people in love.  As long as no emergencies came up, they’d have a wonderful, stress-free evening.

He probably just jinxed it by thinking that.

Banishing his gloomy thoughts, Kurt held out an arm to the younger X-Man, which Kitty gracefully accepted.  “So what would you like to do tonight, my Lady?”

She smiled, slightly shy but gaining confidence.  Just like everything else in her life.  “Take me dancing please.”

“As you wish.”


	7. Baleful Polymorph

“Are you sure about this?”

“If I’d any doubts, I wouldn’t have offered.” Belasco smiled and pulled Kitty up onto his lap. She shifted about, then hiked her skirt up until she was straddling him. “Comfortable?”

“You don’t want my answer.” To his surprise, she didn’t reach up towards his face but rather caught his hands, clasping them between her smaller ones.

“Don’t want to start with the fangs?”

“You’ve  _always_  had fangs. That’s not strange.”

She twisted them around bending the wrist this way then that. Finally, she tried interlacing their fingers together. “This feels odd.” She then rearranged their digits until they fit in the old pattern, her thumb between his thumb and forefinger, her pointer and middle between his middle and ring, with her last two fingers curling on the outside.

“Now I feel odd.” He maneuvered their hands back to the original lacing. “Sorry.”

“I’ll get used to it.” She was examining the nails now.

“When I first remembered, I tried taping the fingers of my left hand together in the old pattern. But honestly, I found that arrangement to be … clumsy. I admit I prefer it this way.”

“Mmmhmm. If that’s what you're comfortable with … did you know you’ve got claws now? I never noticed that before.”

“I suppose every time you were close enough to tell before, you were a cat. Yes, they’re thicker now.”

“And curved. No fair,  _I’m_  Shadowcat.” She let go of his hands to cup his face. She didn’t meet his eyes, however, more interested in his skin this time. Belasco closed his eyes, letting himself savor the feeling. Her hands felt so cool. “I’m not sure if I miss the fur or not.”

“I don’t. Shedding everywhere wasn’t fun and it tended to itch in weird places.”

“It was an important part of you being my fuzzy elf. But it’s easier to kiss you now.” She followed words with action, kissing him on his nose. “Your nose is the same.”

“I don’t think I ever actually changed that part.”

“Yes, you did. When you were the enemy it was quite straight. Now you’ve it’s somewhat curved, just like when you were Nightcrawler.”

“I’ve never noticed.” He reached up and felt his face. His nose was somewhat aquiline, but he’d never paid attention to it while he was just Belasco so he supposed he’d just have to take her word for it. Kurt wondered what had prompted the change. Still too big for his face though.

She moved again, rising to her knees to card her hands through his hair. This close he could distinguish between her perfume (cherries and strawberries) and her own scent, salt and musk. “I think I may miss the curls too.”

The next touch was his horns, which drew a gasp from him. “Careful, Katzchen. Those are sensitive.” The touch stopped.

“Did that hurt?”

He chuckled. “Not that kind of sensitive. It’s just … being a demon focused on temptation doesn’t do a lot of good for my self-control, okay?” He felt her hair touch his face as she nodded. Probably didn’t understand yet, but if she kept going she’d know exactly how he felt about this. She continued to lightly trace over the projections, then rubbed the base where they entered the skin. By the time she was satisfied and settled back down, he was breathing heavily.

“Keep your eyes closed.” He followed her instruction but fisted his hands on the armrests of his throne. This was for her benefit, not his.

She continued to explore the planes of his face, down from the horns to his chin again. “Your face really is the same. Same nose, same forehead, cheekbones, even your chin.”

“Never really liked my nose and chin. Always thought they were too big.”

“You never were classically handsome. But you still looked nice.” Now her hands slipped down to his shoulders. “This part’s also strange. You had a gymnast’s build before. You look more muscular now.”

He nodded. “I’m less flexible in this form. But I can hit much harder now.”

“That’s not what you're known for.” He could hear the smile in her voice, but he wanted to see it now. He opened his eyes.

“I might be the Ruler of Limbo now, but I can definitely still hold my own in a fistfight.” Her lips were tilted up, one side higher than the other, and just the barest glimpse of her teeth. It might have looked sardonic, but for the happy light in her eyes.

“Your eyes are still the same. I can get used to all the rest.”

It was too hard to hold back now. His tail wrapped around her waist to pull her close and he kissed her, deeper than he had allowed himself before. She let him explore, her eyes fluttering shut. Her hands slipped off his shoulders, one moving to trace over his tail, the other slipping down to his lap. Kitty pushed the edge of his tunic up until …

“Did you really not wear underwear to this thing?”

“Too soon?”

She pulled away from where he was kissing her neck. “You’re so lucky I love you.” He took the moment to start unbuttoning her shirt, thankful again that he had kept the five-fingered hands. He probably would have started fumbling with his old digits. He then let his tail work on removing her bra, while Kitty pulled his cape away and tossed it somewhere on the floor. “Katzchen, your skirt … “

“Mmm, give me a moment.” She slipped his tail through the back of her skirt and underwear, then concentrated a moment. She seemed like mist in his lap and the clothing started to slip through her. Catching on he pulled them out the rest of the way, then dropped them. They were probably going to have to spend a lot of time later finding all her clothes.

“Want me to do the same for yours?”

“Takes too much time.” He did pull off his belt and toss it, but simply pulled the rest of the fabric up. Then his hands are back on her waist helping to support herself as rises up again. Hers separate, one to his shoulder to brace, the other down to guide him into her. His tail wraps around one of her thighs to give some extra support.

He bites his lip while she adjusts, not wanting to push her too fast. After a few tentative movements, she starts moving faster. A few more minutes of that and he starts thrusting with her rhythm. She’s crying out now, head thrown back, and breasts pressed towards him. He’s got one arm behind her back for support, and the other sliding up to squeeze her left breast. It’s getting harder to hold back, but he has enough pride to want to see her reach completion first. Her eyes open, then she’s kissing him, as deep as he was earlier while pulling herself so close, he almost feels like she’s phasing into him. Her core flutters and seizes around him. With relief, he finally allows himself to let go and releases inside her.

Her core clutches him in the aftershocks of her orgasm, even as he makes the last few thrusts. He’s wanted this for so long, he almost wants to take her again, but she looks tired. “Would you like to sleep?”

She draws back, stretching her arms behind her head, and giving him quite a show as well. “A bath first, I think.” She then carefully disengages, but before she can stand he sweeps her up in his arms. They can worry about clean-up later.

“Your wish is my command.”


	8. A Friend in Need

“This is all your fault.”

This wasn’t the first time Piotr had argued with Belasco over something.  Usually, the Demon Lord went for drama and hyperbole to convince people, which in hindsight made sense.  Most of his debates involved getting people to do things against their better interests; emotional manipulation and intimidation were much better than rational arguments in those cases.  But this wasn’t like those times.  Instead of being loud and over-the-top, Belasco’s voice was quiet and edged, as if he was barely keeping control.  This wasn’t Belasco blaming him, this was  _Kurt._

He was also wrong.  “This is no one’s fault except the shooter.  How dare you blame me, as if I wanted Katya to die?”

“She’s only dead because you lost control.  If you hadn’t she would never have needed to interfere on your behalf.   _You should have died instead_.”

“Then what do you suggest she should have done?  She couldn’t get near me to phase me out; I was in the middle of a Terrigen fog.  She might have lost her powers too.  She couldn’t phase the gunman, the bullet would have returned to normal by the time it reached me.  Katya did the best she could by trying to disarm him.”

“You should have run away-”

“Which I was doing.”

“Or tried to tackle the gunman yourself-”

“He was on the roof.”

“Or just let yourself be killed!”  Red-skinned hands dug into Piotr’s shoulders.  With his background as Mr. Sinister, he’d have his powers back eventually, but that would be months from now.  Right now he wasn’t sure he’d last that long.  Those hands were awfully close to his throat.  “Anything would be better than losing Katzchen all over again!”

“Then why didn’t you save her?  You're the Demon Lord!  You can teleport!  You can travel through time!  So why don’t you go back to when she needed you, Kurt!”  

“ _Belasco.”_ That wasn’t either of them.  The Ruler of Limbo and the Czar of Russia paused in their argument and turned to the newcomer.

“Magik, how did you-”

“Ilyana, why are you-”

They stopped when the blonde drew the Soulsword.  “I never wanted this back.  I knew what it would mean.”  She glared at both of them.  “Kitty would hate this.  She’d hate watching you fight over her.  Or blaming each other for her death.  You both know this.  So why the hell do you think it’s appropriate to get in a fist fight during her funeral?”  Magik didn’t bother to wait for an explanation.  She turned to her brother first.

“ _Bratya_ , even a Demon Lord has limitations.  Belasco has no precognition.  He couldn’t know she’d be in danger.  And his time travel only produces a stable time loop.  If he could have saved her, he would have already.”

She then turned to her erstwhile mentor.  “As for you, Kitty would have gladly given her life to save any of us.  And it’s not  _brat’s_ fault.  It’s only the fault of the shooter for trying to kill the Czar of Russia.  And you’ve already claimed him.”

The two men were silent.  Finally, after a moment, Belasco pulled away from Piotr.  The Russian resisted the urge to massage the bruises left from the Demon Lord’s grip.  He dare not show any weakness to this enemy.

Magik nodded.  “That’s better.  Now, you’re going to go out there and behave like mature adults.  Today is for her.  You won’t fight, or snipe at each other or do anything that would embarrass Kitty.  She was friends with both of you.  Respect her enough to act like it.”

Piotr nodded.  His sister was right.  His grievance with Belasco could wait a day.  As he took the time to smooth his suit down so no one could see any evidence of the confrontation, Belasco stepped close but refrained from touching him.  “This isn’t over,” the Demon Lord hissed, low enough that the other resident of Limbo couldn’t hear him.

Piotr didn’t bother to acknowledge the threat.  There would be time enough for a reckoning after the funeral.  For now, though, he and the Demon Lord would work together to bring the woman they had both loved to her final resting place.


	9. Comforting the Widower

“I understand you’re angry, but I simply don’t know where she is.”  Had Jude any hair he would have been pulling it out in frustration.  As it was, he let his irritation bleed into his voice.  “I haven’t even started judging the living who should be dead; the actual dead are being kept in stasis.”

“And what’s causing the delay?”

“I don’t even have a Hell set-up.  I can’t begin judging anyone until the infrastructure for the Afterlife-”  Jude cut himself off as he felt the tell-tale pressure change of an inbound teleport.  “Did you just get invaded?” he asked Belasco.

The Ruler of Limbo nodded.  His yellow eyes, already burning with anger, narrowed at this latest provocation.

“How is that even possible?”

“Oh, I’ve never bothered to put up much defense against people entering my territory.  It’s leaving that’s the problem.”  The Demon Lord stalked towards the intruder, Death following at his heels.  They entered the throne room to confront the trespasser.

“Jimaine Szardos.  And here I thought you had learned to leave well enough alone.”  Jude stared in surprise.  Belasco was right, it was the blonde sorceress who had tried to convince Dr. Strange to take her as a disciple decades ago.  She was remarkably well preserved, although he assumed magic probably played a hand in that.

“Oh Kurt, I know what you said.  But I had just heard about what happened to Kitty and I thought you might need to talk with someone.”

“She died two years ago,” stated Belasco bluntly.  “And you look like you want to comfort me straight into the bed.”  Also true.  She wasn’t in that pink circus get up from years ago, but the black Merry Widow with the fishnet tights was no better.  Jude wondered what arrogance had led to her deciding that seducing the Ruler of Limbo was a good idea, especially given that the demon was clearly still grieving for Kitty Pryde.  Looks like she hadn’t learned anything since Dr. Strange had beaten her in that magician’s duel.

“I had no way of finding out before today; I’m not speaking to anyone in Excalibur before.  And this is my work costume-”

“Save it,” he snapped.  “I told you what would happen if I ever saw you again.  A pity you didn’t listen.”  With that, the Demon Lord grabbed the blonde’s arm and teleported away.  Through the windows of the throne room, Jude could hear a feminine scream, then his host was back in a puff of sulfurous smoke.

“Did you just make more work for me?”

That shook Belasco out of his anger, and he blinked at the former Entropic Man in confusion.  “What?  Oh.  No need to worry.  I gave her over to the Dire Wraiths.  They’ll hunt her down and tear her to pieces.”

“And then she’ll be another person I’ll have to harvest.”

“Ah, that’s the wonder of it.”  The Demon Lord winked at Death as if sharing in a joke.  “Souls that are torn apart and eaten by Dire Wraiths do not enter the Afterlife.  Instead, they sustain the Dire Wraiths, their identity gets digested and their souls become part of Limbo, strengthening the Wraiths and myself.”

The screams, which had died down, started up again.  “This is Limbo, couldn’t she just pull herself back together again?”

“It may take a few repetitions, but do you really think someone can recover from being constantly chased down and eaten?  Eventually, everyone becomes incapable of holding on to their personality.  Even the soul will be shredded.”

Well, that did explain why no almost no one ever escaped from Belasco.

“It does seem fairly permanent.”  Jude thought it over for a bit.  “You know, I have a proposition for you.”


	10. The Salvation War

 “-then once the Phoenix Force gives me the signal, I’ll activate the portal device Dr. Von Doom gave me and we’ll send your army to attack the Kree reserves on Paradise.  Forces lead by Steve Rogers and Tony Stark will then slip in behind and destroy the portals that are letting them into the dimension.  Once that’s accomplished, all that will be left is mopping up.”

Belasco nodded but seemed preoccupied to Kitty’s eyes.  Behind him, his army of Dire Wraiths seethed impatiently, eager to feast on the Kree invaders.  She wondered if the Demon Lord was having any difficulty keeping his minions under control … no, if that had been the case Sym or D’Spayre or one of the other Lords of Limbo would have attacked him by now.  It must be something else.  “Kurt?  Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Kätzchen.”  He hesitated then set his halberd against one of the stone pillars.  She then found herself with a face full of red fabric as he pulled her into a fierce embrace.  “There’s just something I need to ask you.”

“Shoot.”

A moment more of hesitation.  “After you open the portal to Paradise … I want you to stay here.  Don’t follow us into the battle.”

“What?”  She tried to pull away but wasn’t strong enough to break his hold.  The Jewish woman then used her power to phase through the embrace, getting far enough away to look the Demon Lord in the eye (and incidentally, far enough that he couldn’t just reach out and grab her again).  “Why would you ask something like that?”

“Kätzchen, please.  I’ve lost you twice now.  I don’t want to lose you a third time.  I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here with me.”

“You seemed to survive fine the second time.”

“If Mar-Vell hadn’t gone on his quest to kill Death, I probably would have killed Piotr.  You wouldn’t like the person I become when you’re not here.”

She let him pull her back into a hug.  “I’m sorry, you can’t ask me to do this.  Not when I have the means to defend my home.  I’ve never been the type of person happy to wait to be rescued.”

“I know.”  She felt his voice rumble in his chest.  “But I had to try.”

“It’s OK, I understand.  I’ve been lucky that my friends have always had the means to defend themselves, but I’ve always wanted to keep them safe anyway.  But I know that I have to step back and let them handle their own fights sometimes.  It’s just not easy.”  She felt the call of the Phoenix in the back of her mind.  “There’s the signal.”  She phased away and tossed the portal-maker on the ground; a wormhole the diameter of the Great Hall appeared and the Dire Wraiths surged forward.  Kurt grabbed the discarded halberd and followed after them.

“Promise me you’ll stay safe,” he called to her as she phased to the forefront of the invasion, drawing the Soul Sword as she ran.

“I’ll try.”


	11. Casual Conversation

  _[@mikeellee](https://tmblr.co/msRGsrF9mgF6c5RtJRVFdPA) this was inspired by that pic you posted of Magik at a dinner party._

“Now remember, this is an event showcasing how well the various branches of the Afterlife cooperate.  So the two of you need to be on your best behavior.  That means no killing.”  Kitty put her hands on her hips and glared at her two companions.

Belasco adjusted his cape and turned away from the mirror.  “No killing understood.  May I banish them to Limbo?”

“No, of course not.”

“Even if they’re being annoying?”

“Not even if they are annoying.”

Illyana Rasputina, perched on an overstuffed armchair and waiting for her mentor to finish his grooming, interrupted at this point.  “No banishing.  What about maiming?”

“No maiming either.” sighed the only responsible person in the room.  “Is this really so hard to understand?”

“No killing, no banishing, no permanent injury.  How about if I traumatize them into catatonia?”  Belasco helped Magik to her feet, locked elbows, then offered his free arm to Kitty.  “Sebastian Shaw will be there.” he wheedled.

“ … I’ll get back to you on that.”


	12. First Times

_Sometime in the past._

_She trips and falls, away from her nightmare, tumbling through the floor. The sudden silence is a balm to her wounded spirit, still in shock from traveling to this dimension, losing Ilyana and everyone else, then being confronted by the twisted version of her best friend. Silence is a breathing space, a chance to be alone and recover and plan._

_Until it shatters._

_“Welcome, child. My name is … Belasco.”  
_

* * *

He’s quite pleased with himself. Ilyana is his now, drawn from her home, separated from her friends, with no others to change or influence her away from what he intends to mold her to be. True, a rescue party of some sort has followed her, being dragged into Limbo, but they are scattered, lost, and will be easy prey for him to find. With enough time, he’ll have Ilyana hunt them down. First the Native American, then the Canadian or the German afterward. Next her brother, finally it would be between Storm and her friend. Maybe Ororo last. Peel every bit of hope away from the witch who had been such a thorn in his side.

His musings are interrupted by someone falling from the ceiling, right in front of his throne. He takes a moment to examine the intruder; young, female, in that ridiculous blue and yellow outfit. One of the rescuers then. He remembers this one, the first to reach Ilyana when he grabbed her, the last to be shaken off to wander. Apparently, she had not gone far at all, ending up in his castle.

“Welcome, child. My name is … Belasco.” He smiles as copper-colored eyes widen in fear at him, then deliberately spreads his legs to give her a view. Ilyana was his primary goal, but this one is also young and sheltered. She’d be a fine ornament in addition to his main prize. He doesn’t have to kill her. “You’re here to find your friend, am I right?”

She hesitates, then slowly nods her head.

“Well, why don’t I take you to her?” Her eyes narrow and she starts to sit back on her heels. A pity, he enjoys her on her knees before him. “Now, now, don’t be like that. After all, if you don’t accept my offer, you’ll have to make your own way through the castle. And many are those who have aged and died before finding what they seek here unaided.”

“Now, there is a price for my help, of course.”

“What is it?” she speaks for the first time. Her voice is high and light, emphasizing her youth and naivete. Yes, this one would be a pleasure to turn.

He smirks, spreads his legs even wider and draws his chiton up. She blanches, and he wonders if she’ll run. She’s young, very young as they count things in the ordinary world, and probably has no experience at all. But no, instead she steels herself and leans forward. One hand goes up, bracing herself on the chair. Tentatively, she opens her mouth. She starts with a small lick along the side, then takes in the head.

He’s right, she is inexperienced at this. If he hadn’t been hard already at the thought of corrupting another innocent, they might be at this for a very long time. She slowly takes in more, then pulls back to take a breath. She takes in more on her next try, but still only manages a little more than half-way before her gag reflex kicks in.

Belasco reaches out with his lone hand, intending to force her to go faster when he feels eyes on him. His gaze snaps up, searching the Grand Hall for observers. Not one his subordinates, he knows that, so it must be another one of the rescuers. He sees no one but still knows that person is there. He thinks of demanding that they show themselves, but no, perhaps there is a better idea.

He softens his hand, petting her dark, curly hair rather than forcing her down. “Use your tongue, girl, or we’ll be here all day. And breathe through your nose.” She follows his advice, starting to twine her tongue around his member. The breathing takes longer to learn, and even then she has to pull away every few strokes. Her expression during these breaks is so full of disgust and self-loathing it nearly makes him laugh. The girl isn’t enjoying herself at all.

He pulls her forward by the back of her neck, causing her to shift her position. Now she’s up on her knees between his and needs both her hands to brace. He guides one of her hands so that she can fondle his sac and cover the areas she can’t swallow down. His tail he wraps around her neck. When he feels a slight scrape of teeth he tightens it until she can’t breathe. “Don’t get ideas. I can snap your neck faster than you can do any real damage.” Given how concerned she seemed for her friend, he doubts the scrape was intentional, but better to give her a healthy fear of him now than deal with rebellion later.

Between the voyeur (who still hasn’t left or done anything else) and stripping the poor X-Girl of her innocence he only lasts ten minutes, although he’s fairly sure she thinks it was longer. He holds her down as he ejaculates, eyes still firmly in the corner that he’s sure the observer is hiding in. He keeps her there until she’s swallowed his seed, and only then does he let her go, releasing her hair and unwinding his tail from her neck. “Good enough for your first time, but there’s room for improvement. However you have fulfilled your half of the bargain, so now it’s my turn.”

He stands up, letting his clothes fall to cover him again. He conjures up a door in the nearest wall, then opens it with a flamboyant bow, letting her go through first. As soon as she’s through, but before he follows, he turns back to the apparently abandoned dark corner.

“I hope you enjoyed the show.”

* * *

_As soon as they’re gone, Nightcrawler stops clenching his teeth and lets out the howl that had been building behind them. He hadn’t dared to interfere, not when Shadowcat had been so close. Not when he had seen those claws and that sharp tail, first menacing over her then right by her eyes and wrapped around her throat. He knew the demon knew that he was there, and made sure that all Kurt could do was watch. But that wasn’t even the worst part._

_No, the worst part was how he couldn’t stop watching, couldn’t bring himself to at least give poor Katzchen privacy for her violation. He had seen every moment of it, every time she choked from going too deep, every quick breath she had grabbed between thrusts. He had seen it, and a part of him hadn’t wanted to rescue her. No, there was a part of him that had wanted to be in the demon’s place wanted to be the one forcing her to her knees, having her make those soft noises for him. Even now, his body still throbbed, yearning for the same release it had witnessed._

_He screamed again, even as his hands tore at his suit, desperate to relieve the pressure that had been building. It didn’t take long, just a few strokes and he spilled all over the stone floor. Disgusted, he cleaned himself off with the remains of his leotard._

_He should get up and follow them. Pretty clear that any attempt at stealth or subtlety was doomed from the start. But for those few minutes, all Kurt could do was put his head in his hands and weep for the shame that he was drowning in._


	13. Wishful Thinking

_Takes place after Belasco remembers that he’s Kurt but before the wedding between King Britain and Medusa._

“Has anyone seen Belasco?  Did he return to New York or is he still here?”  Brian was not comfortable with the thought of his former enemy wandering around London with no surveillance.  Sure, it turned out Belasco was actually Kurt Wagner and he was trying to redeem himself for what he had done, but that didn’t mean Brian was ready to trust him again.

“Lord Belasco is currently in the main hall.”  One of the Union Jacks replied.

“Alright then.”  Brian quickly made his way over to the entrance of the palace.  When he got there he could see Belasco at the center of a magic circle, with glowing red runes all over the statues of Excalibur.  Even as he sprinted over, the runes and circle flickered and died.  “What are you doing?” he asked, trying to keep his voice level.

The red-skinned man turned to look him in the eye.  (This dynamic was so weird.  The two of them had never stood face to face like this before.  Kurt was so much shorter than Brian and Belasco had never faced him in such close quarters.)  “I thought I would try to free the rest of Excalibur from their prison.  As Belasco, I never gave them a thought, only pleased that some of my enemies had been removed from my path without having to lift a finger.  Now though . . . I am the Sorcerer Supreme of Limbo.  I might as well put that power to good use.”  He dropped his head.  “But as you can see, it didn’t work.”

If Belasco could try to solve a problem that had been plaguing Brian’s dreams for the past decade, then he could at least be civil.  “It’s alright, Kurt.  I’ve been trying for years to free them.  Magik, the Scarlet Witch, Beast, I even had Magneto come here once to see if there was anything he could do.  Unfortunately, it looks like only the Grey Goblin can reverse it.  And since I killed him, it will have to stay this way until someone can find an alternate version of him to come and undo the petrification.”

“Don’t feel bad about failing because everyone else has failed too?  Not much of a pep talk, Brian.”

The blond man shrugged.  “You wouldn’t feel any better if I sugar-coated it for you.”  They spent a few minutes examining the statues.  “Out of curiosity, how much do you remember about them?”

Belasco trailed one red hand over a stone sword.  “This is Kylun.  He tried to decapitate me the first time we met.  That sword of his would certainly work on me now.”  He moved on.  “Pete Wisdom.  I never did like him.  Especially after he broke Kitty’s heart.”  There was a couple trying to shield each other.  He placed his single one over their clasped hands.  “Dane and Faiza.  They were very close, dating I think.”

“Not quite, but probably would have if they’d been given more time”

The Lord of Limbo continued around.  “Meggan Puceau.  If I remember correctly she was engaged to you, right?”  Brian nodded, unable to speak around the lump in his throat.  It had been over a decade, but he still hurt when he thought of her.  He’d never found anyone to replace Meggan and despite the pain, he didn’t want to.

Belasco gasped, and Brian realized that Kurt was experiencing something very similar.  His left hand came up to caress a stone face.  “Kitty Pryde.  My best friend.”  He leaned forward to rest his head on hers, a pose Brian had seen them take many times during the Excalibur years.  Given that Belasco was taller than Kurt had been, it wouldn’t have worked except for the platform Brian had put the statues on.  “She was scared of me the first time we met.  Her pet dragon, Lockheed liked to pull on my tail.  She was a genius with computers but couldn’t cook to save her life.  I gave her a Star of David necklace once.  She made a keyboard I could type on in return.  We both loved apples.”  He pulled back but continued to trail his hand down her face, over her shoulder and right arm until he could take her stone hand in his.  “She always had such lovely hands.  Such a shame she used them to caress Wisdom and Rasputin.”

Well, Brian hadn’t been expecting  _that_.  He’d always assumed the two of them simply weren’t attracted to each other.  Maybe there had been something there after all, even if it had been one-sided.  He cleared his throat.  "Please don’t tell Czar Rasputin that.  She holds a special place in his heart, even if he’s not in love with her anymore.”

“No, of course not.  Just … thinking.”  Belasco turned around reluctantly.  “Anyway, was there a reason you sought me out?”

“Yes, actually.  I need to discuss-”  With that, Brian turned his attention to matters of trade and diplomacy.  But he never forgot the look on Belasco’s face when he gazed at the statue of Kitty Pryde.


End file.
